2026 NEXUS UAV EXPO
Exhibition date: 29 September - 1 October, 2026
Exhibition Cycle: Annual
Exhibition Venue: Ankara, Türkiye
Exhibition Introduction
NEXUS is Türkiye's premier UAV exhibition, an international professional event focused on the vertical UAV sector, built as a precise matching platform for enterprises across the UAV industry chain. The event brings together procurement resources from diverse political and economic circles, radiating core buyers across NATO and the Middle East while spanning Europe, Asia and Africa, and unlocking a multi-billion-dollar product market.
Leveraging Türkiye's competitive advantages in the UAV industry, the exhibition opens up a blue-ocean market for domestic exhibitors. As a geopolitical hub connecting Europe, Asia and Africa, the event covers 35 high-demand markets within a 4-hour flight radius, helping enterprises use Türkiye as a springboard to expand their reach into the Middle East, North Africa and other surrounding regions.
Exhibition Highlights
Precision Market Gap-Filling Opportunities
Backed by Türkiye's geographical advantages, the event simultaneously covers the growth of military procurement and the civil low-altitude economy. It allows domestic exhibitors to avoid the fierce competitive red ocean of European and American enterprises, with distinct advantages in cost performance and supply chain response speed.
Full Value Chain Coverage
The exhibition runs through the entire industry chain of "upstream components - midstream complete machines - downstream applications - back-end services", precisely matching the needs of Türkiye's UAV industry. Focusing on the core component gap under Türkiye's 65% UAV localization rate, it provides critical market entry opportunities for domestic component and complete machine manufacturers.
Extensive Cross-Industry Coverage
The event covers dual sectors of "military ISR & strike/anti-drone systems + civil agriculture/logistics/emergency response", adapting to multi-scenario demands. With Türkiye as the hub, it radiates 35 high-demand markets including the Middle East and North Africa. It also invites end users such as agricultural associations and logistics enterprises to facilitate the docking of low-altitude economy implementation demands.
Forward-Looking Conferences
The event focuses on cutting-edge topics such as "AI + UAVs" and "hydrogen energy power", analyzing the direction of technological upgrading. It helps exhibitors anticipate industry trends and lock in industrial development opportunities in advance.
Exhibition Advantages
Gap-Filling Demands in the Military Market
Türkiye's UAV exports reached USD 1.8 billion in 2023, and its total defense exports rose to USD 7.154 billion in 2024, with UAVs accounting for a significant share. However, the localization rate of core UAV components stands at only 65%, with key links including engines, high-end chips, and precision electro-optical payloads highly dependent on imports. Domestic enterprises with such production capacity (such as power system and avionics equipment suppliers) can directly connect with the supply chain demands of leading local manufacturers including Baykar Technology and Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).
Growth Opportunities in the Civilian Market
Türkiye's low-altitude economy has entered an explosive period after policy liberalization. In 2025, the market size of UAV delivery is expected to reach USD 6 billion, the agricultural spraying market will grow to USD 1 billion, and the emergency rescue market will exceed USD 2 billion. China's mature technologies in agricultural UAVs, logistics UAVs and industry-specific solutions perfectly align with Türkiye's dual demands of "traditional industry upgrading + emerging scenario implementation".
Geographical Radiation: A Natural Hub for Eurasian and African Markets
- Driven by geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East, military UAV procurement in the region increased by 42% year-on-year in 2023, with a strong preference for cost-effective products represented by Türkiye's TB2 UAVs. However, there is a long-standing gap in supporting maintenance services and component replacement demands.
- In the process of agricultural modernization in African and Central Asian countries, the demand for low-cost agricultural UAVs is growing at an annual rate of over 30%. However, the production capacity of Türkiye's local enterprises is concentrated in the military sector, leaving a "demand gap" in the civilian market. Through the regional influence of the NEXUS exhibition, domestic exhibitors can use Türkiye as a "transit base" to radiate into broader emerging markets.
Policy Dividends: Definitive Support for China-Türkiye Cooperation
Market Access: Government-recognized procurement institutions in Türkiye such as CARE-SAR can provide Chinese enterprises with "one-stop" market access services including Turkish Standards Institution (TSE) certification assistance, customs clearance consulting, and tax solutions, directly avoiding compliance risks.
Cooperation: Türkiye encourages the "technology introduction + localized production" model. Domestic enterprises can connect with joint venture opportunities through the exhibition, and enter markets with high tariff barriers such as the EU and the Middle East by leveraging Türkiye's preferential tariff policies.
Exhibition Scope
Various Types of UAVs
Aerodynamics, Structure, System Design & Materials
Airport Equipment & Maintenance
Mission Payloads
Industry Services
Control & Navigation Systems
